The President of the Nigerian Union of Traders Association in Ghana (NUTAG) Chief Chukwuemeka Nnaji has expressly declared that the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is unwilling to sit and reach a consensus with them (NUTAG).
Speaking in an interview on Happy FM’s ‘Epa Hoa Daben’ with Kwame Afrifa Mensah, he said, “I have to be frank with you. When you hear members of the GUTA speaking you assume we have been in a fight before which is not the case. Some of them are our friends and business partners but when it comes to this GUTA and NUTAG issue, it becomes another war.”
The NUTAG President revealed that there has been various instances where they have tried to meet with their Ghanaian counterparts to resolve the issue but their efforts have not yielded any fruits.
He called on the government to mediate and solve the issue. “I think the government should take steps to resolve the conflict between GUTA and NUTAG”, he added.
Remarks made by Chief Emeka comes after President Akufo-Addo criticized the decision by GUTA to shut down shops owned by members of Nigerian traders at Circle in Accra.
President Akufo-Addo has said that GUTA must allow the ongoing consultations between itself, the Trade Ministry and Ghana Immigration Service to be completed in order to find a lasting solution to the problem.
“People cannot take the law into their own hands and enforce the law. If we do that, Ghana will become chaotic. We have to be careful about this phenomenon of taking the law into our own hands about situations that government is yet to resolve” President Akufo-Addo said.
“Please allow the work that the Trade Minister and the Committee are doing with the Immigration Authorities to progress. I am confident that if we allow same to work, your issues with foreign participation in the retail business will soon be a thing of the past in line with the law” President Akufo Addo added.
By: Joel Sanco
